Category: Tax – State Corporate

Owners of s-corporations are quickly introduced to some fairly complex tax issues. An s-corporation has “flow-through taxation”. This means the s-corporation itself generally pays no income taxes for its income, but its stockholders do. The s-corporation files its own tax return. That tax return generates a K1 that’s given to its shareholders and its shareholders report and pay the taxes on the shareholders’ personal tax returns. But the shareholders may also be required to pay themselves a salary if they are also employees or otherwise perform services for the corporation. Continue reading “Income and Salary to an S-Corp Owner”

Whether on purpose or by mistake, taxpayers sometimes find themselves years behind on filing their tax returns. Sometimes people are lucky and decide on their own to file past due tax returns and move on with their life. Others have the decision made for them when an IRS agent knocks on their door. Regardless, when you are significantly behind on your tax return filings, you should seek professional help to ensure you can minimize penalties and, hopefully, reduce the taxes you need to pay. Continue reading “Didn’t File Tax Returns? The IRS Offers Solutions for Nonfilers”

Despite common belief, taxes can be discharged sometimes through either a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy. In fact, bankruptcy is often the best option for many with tax debts. A tax attorney will typically be familiar with both the tax law and non-tax law options available to you and should be able to point you toward the best solution. Continue reading “Taxes and Bankruptcy in Maryland”

Persons holding equity interests in a business can use a buy-sell agreement to ensure the continuity of the business and to solidify their expectations regarding the taxes, rights, and obligations of each party. The buy-sell agreement can dictate the method by which a person’s equity interest will be purchased. Buy-sell agreements can be used by nearly any type of entity, regardless of whether the entity is a corporation, LLC, or partnership.

Unlike most business debts, employees and owners of a Maryland business can have personal liability for the company’s tax debts. Similar to how the IRS pursues responsible persons and owners for payroll taxes, states, including Maryland, also pursue responsible persons and owners for certain state taxes. A person that normally would be protected from business liabilities by a personal liability shield, such as the corporate or LLC entity, will not be able to similarly avoid these tax liabilities.

The 2010 Pennsylvania Tax Amnesty officially ended June 18, 2010. If you missed the deadline you may still be able to negotiate payments and reduce your penalties for past due taxes. For instance, you may be able to use a Voluntary Disclosure Agreement. Please contact my office for more information.

Pennsylvania has joined the parade of states that decided to use a tax amnesty for an immediate boost to their state’s revenue. The Pennsylvania tax amnesty begins on April 26, 2010 and ends June 18, 2010. Included in the taxes eligible for amnesty are the corporate income tax, the individual income tax, and the sales and use taxes. This can be an excellent opportunity for businesses and individuals located outside the state to become compliant with Pennsylvania.

If you are unable to pay the Internal Revenue Service for taxes you owe, you may be able to qualify for a tax payment plan. The IRS calls such payment plans an Installment Agreement. Your state, including Maryland, also may offer similar tax payment plans.

When forming a new LLC or corporation many contemplate whether it’s better to form their entity in their home state or in another, such as Delaware or Nevada. For most small businesses, the best state for formation is its home state.

Choosing an entity for your business can be a difficult decision. There are many types of entities available, and you are not limited to forming an entity in your state. Further, the entity you choose does not necessarily determine how the entity will be taxed. For instance, you may choose to form a Maryland LLC but also choose to have it taxed as an s-corporation. The decision depends upon many factors including: the business purpose, the property to be owned, expectations to terminate or sell the business, the owner’s estate planning concerns, and, of course, taxes. There is no universal “best entity”, and choosing the proper entity requires every business to be individually analyzed.

Most states, including Maryland, provide you with the following popular state entity choices: the sole proprietorship, the general partnership, the limited liability company, and the corporation. Other entities for more specialized purposes also exist, such as the limited partnership and the professional association (a P.A. or P.C.).

With Maryland tax audits increasing, you should ensure your company is prepared. An ongoing, organized approach to preserving necessary documents will streamline a sales tax audit and may even lead to tax refunds. First, beware, a state auditor visiting your office for a sales tax audit isn’t required to keep the focus solely upon sales taxes. A typical audit may cover other area such as your payroll taxes, and information obtained through the audit can lead to income tax adjustments as well. So, while a sales tax deficiency may only cause a minor sales tax adjustment, the revenue and expense information obtained can lead to sizable state income tax adjustments. Further, since states share their income tax adjustments with the IRS, you may trigger a federal income tax audit and adjustment as well. Continue reading “Maryland Sales Tax Audit Defense”